DRYDEN, Ont. — Firefighting crews and aircraft from Alberta, Saskatchewan, the Northwest Territories and the United States are being deployed on forest fires in northwestern Ontario.
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry requested the support, in part, because of an escalating fire situation in the region, and partly because about 160 firefighters and support personnel from the northwest are currently on duty in northeastern Ontario.
Twenty firefighters from Alberta were scheduled to arrive in the region on Tuesday, joining 20 fire rangers from Saskatchewan and 20 from the U.S.
Twenty additional firefighters are expected to arrive from the Northwest Territories by Thursday.
Aircraft and crews on loan in the northwest region include two CL-215 waterbombers from Saskatchewan, four CL-215s from Alberta, and four AT-802 Fire Boss tankers from Alberta.
An MNRF spokesperson on Tuesday corrected an earlier news release that stated Mexico had sent 100 firefighters to northwestern Ontario, explaining that these crews had actually been deployed to the northeast.
The ministry reported 31 new fires in the northwest on Monday, mostly in the Red Lake and Kenora districts.
Fires of note in the northwest include Kenora Fire 71, about 35 kilometres north of Wabaseemoong First Nation. Smoke from this fire has drifted 80 kilometres to the city of Kenora.
The fast-growing blaze at Huston Lake near the Manitoba border had grown by Monday evening to 2,000 hectares since its discovery on Sunday.
Saskatchewan firefighters have been assigned to assist in the suppression effort.
The MNRF also reported that it had sent an ignition team to Red Lake Fire 70, near the western boundary of Woodland Caribou Provincial Park. They will work on bringing the 1400-hectare blaze to natural boundaries.
Fire rangers are also placing water sprinklers on various outpost cabins in the area.
